In 1953, Sir Edmund Hillary, from New Zealand, and Tenzing Norgay, from Napal, stood on top of the world. After several failed attempts, they reached the summit of Mt. Everest, the tallest mountain on the planet (2900+ feet). It took their breath away (in more than one way). But after a few moments to savor their victory, they quickly headed back down the mountain. The mountain top moment soon became a well-documented but distant memory.
Before the age of airplanes, climbing to the top of a mountain was the only way to see the broader picture of our surroundings and typography. Fortunately, we do not have to climb Mt. Everest to experience a spiritual mountain top moment with God. Those moments provide an opportunity to discover more about God, experience him differently, and see life from a higher vantage point. These spiritual mountain top experiences often change the trajectory of our lives by expanding our horizons, clarifying our vision, and changing our perspectives.
Our spiritual mountain top moments (MTMs for short) don’t have to occur on a physical mountain; however, there are many scriptural examples where they do. Consider the following significant God encounters on mountains:
- Noah landed his boat on Mt. Ararat
- Abraham offered Isaac on Mt. Moriah
- Moses meets God in the burning bush on Mt. Horeb
- The Ten Commandments are given to Moses on Mt. Sinai
- Jesus was transfigured before the disciples on Mt. Taber
- Disciples were given the Great Commission on a mountain.
You can probably think of others.
I suggest we have three different responses (or combinations) on our MTMs. I call them:
- The “Wow!” moment
- The “Whew!” moment
- The “Aha!” moment
The Wow moment.
On this MTM, we are confronted with the incredible wonder of our transcendent God. It is when we see the Lord “sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted.” We sense his creative power and sovereign reign. He is the Lord of lords and King of kings. It is a moment when we know deep within us that He is God and we are not. And for a moment at least, we feel that’s how it should be.
The Wow moment not only elevates God to his rightful preeminence, but we sense our smallness in comparison. As a long-time resident of the prairie states, I feel small whenever I travel in the Rocky Mountains. Others may feel it when watching the ocean’s rolling waves, viewing the universe through a telescope, or seeing microscopic life through a microscope.
Our response in the Wow moment is to worship by personally humbling ourselves and elevating God. In the Wow moment, our perspective changes from God is the Creator to God is my creator; God is sovereign to God is sovereign over me! This MTM naturally elicits praise, gratitude, and thanksgiving.
I think this is the kind of moment the disciples had when they witnessed Christ’s transfiguration. It was so incredible they wanted to set up camp and stay there forever. It was the feeling that everything had come together and that “It can’t get any better than this.”
The Whew moment
Where the Wow moment takes our breath away, the Whew moment gives it back. The Wow moment faces us with the transcendence of God, but the Whew moment exposes us to his immanence. On this mountain top moment, we sing Psalm 23: “The Lord is my Shepherd….and that’s all I need.” We can relax because we know God is with us. Life may still have unresolved issues, but they are not important since we are secure in the presence of the Good Shepherd.
In this MTM, there is a sense of relief and peace: Shalom. God is not only sovereignly reigning over the world and everything in it, but he is also intimately walking beside me. Down through history, the church has had a difficult time balancing the transcendence and immanence of God. Medieval European gothic cathedrals emphasized God’s transcendence with spires and intricately decorated high ceilings. The cathedral was designed to lift your eyes up to behold the holy, transcendent God. Unfortunately, the imminence of God leading to a personal relationship with him was often thought impossible as (in their minds) he was too transcendent to care about the individual (immanence).
However, in the Whew moment, God’s immanence overrides his transcendence as he invades our personal space. In the Whew moment, God is not only the God who loves the world but the God who loves me.
Elijah experienced a Whew moment during a famine in Israel when a vengeful King Ahab pursued him. Surprisingly, God takes him to an unlikely place for safety and provision: the “mountain top” home of a poor Shunamite woman. Her home was a shelter in the storm, where he could escape the threats and find shalom.
The Aha moment
We gain clarity when we experience the Aha moment on the mountain top. Above the clouds, we can see further than we can in the valley. We are still limited by the horizon and our human line of sight, but from a higher vantage point we can see farther and gain new perspectives.
The Aha comes as God’s Spirit uses the Word to open our eyes and hearts in a moment of revelation – even inspiration – to what has been a mystery, making it more understandable. Our faith grows as we see what is true, even though it is invisible. We may also gain hope as we claim promises not yet fulfilled. Paul refers to his dramatic Aha Mountain Top Moment in 2 Corinthians 12. “I know a man in Christ…(who) was caught up into the third heaven…into Paradise and heard inexpressible words…”
Mountain top moments, like the mountain meadow, don’t last long. We must stop, look around, and savor the moment when they happen. Years ago, when I directed collegiate ministries, we would take students on ski conferences during winter breaks, spending a few days in Bible study and then a few days on the ski slopes.
After several of these trips, I began to gain enough confidence to move from the “bunny” slope to a green one, trying out my skill at “parallel” skiing. After spending the afternoon trying not to cause a pile-up when I exited the ski lift and not hitting someone on the ski slope, I finally gained the confidence to quit looking at my skis and look up. It was an amazing view, and I almost missed it. I had spent the day looking at my ski boots when this breathtaking view from the mountain top was all around me. I had focused on getting down the slope without falling when I could have focused on the grandeur of the mountain view.
Sometimes we are so focused on living the Christian life without falling that we miss the view from the mountains. Whether it is a Wow, a Whew, or an Aha moment, the mountain top landscape is a gift not to miss, maybe even create a memorial to remember them.
For Reflection
- Reflect on one of your Mountain Top Moments. How did you feel? How did God show up?
- Reflect on one of the biblical mountain top events and note how God showed up.
Excellent article Ron as always.
One minor correction…. Everest is 29,000+ feet.
Blessings,
Doug Fischer